Progress has been made on assembling the D and C deck components. These form the open car deck at the stern and the small open deck above.

This work is pre-prototype; to confirm ideas, test theories on construction method and to iron out any bugs in the components or to see if things can be made easier or better for the modeller.

The funnel has also been test assembled, and it was found that it would be better to allow 1 or 2mm extra on the 'skin' top and bottom for a better fit. This extra can then be trimmed off by the modeller so that the 'skin' sits flush.

The hardest part of this so far is getting the sheer correct - especially as this is being built 'out' of the hull. When the 'proper' build commences, the decks will take a natural sheer from bow to stern - so long as the supporting timber bearers have been fitted correctly to the hull sides.

One tip that will be in the instructions will be to drop the 2mm thick deck components - and the curved superstructure walls - into almost boiling water to soften them slightly and give them a 'pre-bend' before fitting them. 2mm styrene is quite reluctant to bend easily!!!

Additionally, each deck will need to be detailed, painted and finished before the next deck is applied. This is especially so in the case of D deck (the open car deck) as it is very noticable on the finished model, and would be almost impossible to do after C deck has been fitted.

We were discussing the options of a bow thruster today, and have decided to fit one of these:

A tad expensive at £80, but looks far more realistic with the props in the tube than the impeller type.

Additionally, we are going to fit an Action unit that will give us proportional control over the outer propshafts relative to the rudder position in a turn, with the central shaft running at a constant speed. This, with the bow thrust, should give quite good maneuoverability (sp?) when docking....

H Allok it was a typo but my pet moth in my wallet says .On the bow thrust front. have heard on these units that the lnk between the motor and the gearbox input shaft can slip and it s a pain to get to. I think they do look real good. I found ths company in the US owned by Rick. Hs modeling skills are top so have a look at this thrusters.http://www.scalemodelcastings.com/Tunnel-thrusters_c_33.htmlOn esc my small Finnjet had X2 action esc and there mixer. I was not impressed by them at all so the were replaced by Mtroics and the boat improved. I am aware that Fnnjet was a X2 prop x2 rudder set and FEV is X3 prop and x1 rudder set up. This is some thing I have been thinkng about for the sprit class But I do not have an answer at the moment.A small tip for your car decks for lane markings. get some yellow insulation tape cut a lenth and LIGHTLY stick it to a clean glass surface. Using a ruler and a very sharp knife cut thin strips down the length to the required width. use the knife blade to pick them up. When laying them on the deck rub one end down firm then lay the strip down trying NOT to strech it as if you do it will come un stuck later. Rub it down and there is you lane markingshttp://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=817609&page=5John

The Raboesch units are really a tad too big, having an internal diameter of 30mm whereas I could do with something that has an internal diameter of 18 / 19mm. John - that link you gave seems interesting. His smallest unit is 24mm with an in-runner brushless. Getting there!!!

If I fit the Raboesch, then this is what it would look like from the outside;

However, the other question would be if it was too wide to fit between the hull sides . A little more research needed methinks!!!

As for the lane markings.....good idea John . But on our prototype, because she is being modelled as at 1973, there were no lane markings. They came in after 1976. I have some photos from 1973 showing the decks as plain dark green, with the internal link-ramps edged in white. Really, the ships were so narrow back then compared to today that they had no real need of lane markings.....the ships bodywork kept the traffic in line!!!

In 76 all the ships adopted the Thoresen orange livery when they had their refits that winter. All my photos from pre-76 showed plain green decks.....post 76 the car deck only had lane markings, and a wide yellow line 'defending' the deck equipment either side (winches etc.) The lorry deck didnt have lane markings at all - at least not until she was with TEF:

Hi Carlif you hull width is less than 50/55mm at the bow were the thruster will sit then the Raboesch 108-30 is a no no as that is an aprox width between the x2 props. I think the idea of using a thruster with a 33mm OD ,30 mm ID trying to make it look like a thruster with a 19mm ID is a non starter as it will be a night mare making the hole smaller.Johnps photos look nice

Thank you John.I was looking for that link.Apart from that this gallery displays ship model scale building from scratch at utter perfection some photos in it also depict a very fine scale solution of a stern thruster using a pump.While of the twin stern thrusters the farther forward one is only a dysfunctional mock the rear one is built as a pump thruster where the water inlet or outlet (depending of the flow direction) is situated right in the thruster's propeller hub which cleverly conceals the principle.I assume that the attached thruster propeller on that pump's in/outlet pipe is merely windmilling.I would favour this kind of model thruster for small thruster diameters and space confined installations.

Ohh! sorry Carl, should have commented on your project before now - brilliant! if you continue as is re your kit quality, build instructions and images of same, I reckon you could well be recognised in the realms of Model Slipway should you desire to become a kit supplier. In my eyes they are second to none. Well done to you - am really enjoying your journey Kind regards, Tony.

Hi Carl,I am the ferry enthusiast from Germany who sent you the mail. I have followed your proposal and have joined the forum. I have taken a look at your drawings, photos etc.. To be honest I am completely excited about your progress. The model is that what I was looking for since years. All the best for your project.

Hi Hermannwelcome to the forum. There are a fair few ferry fans hear.Hi Carl ok so your doing the FEV for christmass 2013 that must mean the sprit class for christmass 2014 . Better work on getting a bigger stocking LOL